1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printing control apparatus for analyzing input information entered from an external equipment such as a host computer thereby generating and printing output information, and a method for selecting a control program for analyzing the input information.
2. Related Background Art
In the conventional computer system, the printer receives data such as character codes and control codes from a host computer connected thereto and effects printing by converting such data into the internal print data that can be processed by the printer, but such data conversion is generally predetermined uniquely regardless of the input interface used or set manually for example through an operation panel.
Recently there is conceived so-called automatic emulation program switching, which is a method for analyzing the input print data and effecting the data conversion by automatically selecting the data conversion means corresponding to said print data, but, also in this case, selection is generally made from all the loaded data conversion means (for example control programs for analyzing the print data, such as emulation program) again regardless of the input interface.
In such prior technology, however, if the printer is provided with plural interfaces which are respectively connected to host computers releasing print data of mutually different kinds, the printer is not necessarily set, at the printing operation, at the data converting situation matching the host computer which is releasing the print data, and there is required confirmation or re-setting of such data converting situation.
The present invention is to resolve the above-mentioned drawback, and the object of the 1st to 5th inventions is to provide a printing control apparatus and a control program selecting method, for registering in advance one or plural data conversion means (control programs) corresponding to the interfaces to which the external equipment are connected, then discriminating the interface through which the data are entered and automatically selecting, among the already registered data conversion means (control programs), data conversion means (control program) corresponding to said identified interface, thereby enabling to eliminate, from the selection, the data conversion means (control programs) unnecessary for said interface and to improve the process efficiency for the print data, in comparison with the case of selection from all the data conversion means.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there are provided plural control programs for analyzing input data entered from plural interfaces for receiving data from external equipment, thereby generating output data; memory means for memorizing information on combination of each interface to which one or plural programs are designated and the programs; discrimination means for discriminating the interface used for data input; and selection means for selecting the optimum control program corresponding to the interface discriminated by said discrimination means by referring to the combination information memorized in said memory means, based on said discriminated interface.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, one or plural control programs, corresponding to each interface, are designated by designation means provided in each host computer.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the memory means is composed of a non-volatile memory medium.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the interfaces are so constructed as to be connectable to respectively different networks.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control program selecting method for use in a printing control apparatus provided with plural control programs for analyzing input data entered from plural interfaces for receiving data from external equipment, thereby generating output data, said method comprising a registration step for registering, in a memory, the information on combination of each interface to which one or plural control programs are designated and the control programs; a discrimination step for discriminating the interface used for data input; and a selection step for selecting the optimum control program corresponding to the interface discriminated by said discrimination step, by referring to the combination information registered in said memory, based on said discriminated interface.
Consequently, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the combination information of each designated interface and the control programs is memorized in the memory means, and the selection means selects the optimum control program, corresponding to the interface discriminated by the discrimination means for discriminating the interface used for the data input, by referring to the combination information memorized in the memory means, based on said discriminated interface, whereby the burden of selecting the control programs corresponding to each interface is alleviated and the optimum control program for the interface used for data input can be efficiently selected.
Also according to the second aspect of the present invention, the control program corresponding to each interface can be designated from the designation means provided in each host computer.
Also according to the third aspect of the present invention, the memory means constituted by the non-volatile enables reproducible reference to the combination information of each designated interface and the control programs corresponding to said interface.
Also according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, there are designated and registered control programs corresponding to the interfaces connected respectively to the mutually different networks, and the optimum control program can be efficiently selected even for the input data entered through different networks.
Also according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the combination information of each interface for which one or plural control programs are designated and the control programs is registered in the memory, then the interface used for the data input is discriminated, and the optimum control program, corresponding to said discriminated interface, by reference to the combination information registered in said memory, based on said discriminated interface, whereby the burden for selecting the control programs corresponding to each interface can be alleviated and the optimum control program corresponding to the interface used for the data input can be efficiently selected.